Collapsible vessel for atmospheric motors.



No. 729,927; PATENTED JUNE 2. 1903.

W. M. FULTON. I

GOLLAPSIBLE VESSEL FOR ATMOSPHERIC MOTORS.

APPLIQATION I ILED NOV. 27, 1901.

N0 MODEL.

Inventor Tn: NORRIS PETERS co, PNDTO-LITMQ. wAsnmnTuN. la, c4

UNITED smarts Patented June 2, 1903.

, PATENT Ospre s,

WESTON M. FULTON, OF KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE.

COLLAPSIBLE VESSEL FOR ATMOSPHERIC MOTORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 729,927, dated June 2,1903.

Application filed November 27,1901. Elerial No- 83,848. (No model.)

- To aZZ whom it may concern:

in atmospheric conditions is transmitted to the motor. It is a matter ofgreat importance in motors ofthis character that the expansive agentshould be such that when placed in a collapsible vessel it willcause-thevessel to reach its extreme limits of expansion and contractionwhen the atmospheric conditions have reached their extreme limits, andmany efforts have heretofore been made to obtain an expansive agent thatwould conform to these ideal conditions. In my United States Patent No.685,269 and in my applications Serial No, 48,852, filed February 25,1901, and Serial No. 80,304, filed October 28, 1901, I have describedvarious expansive agents or mixtures for use in collapsible vessels inwhich several mixtures, solids, liquids, gases, or saturated vaporsenterin various combinations. Now I have discovered that if one or morenon-saturated vapors enter into the expansive mixture employed in thecollapsible vessel the efficiency of the device as awhole is in manyinstances greatly increased and the collapsible vessel can be made tomore nearly respond to theideal conditions mentioned above-11. e., reachthe limits of expansion and contraction coincident with the extremelimits in atmospheric variations.

Any suitable collapsible vessel may be employed in utilizing the presentinvention, and for the purpose of illustration I have shown two suchvessels in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a verticalsection of oneform of collapsible vessel, and Fig. 2 is a side elevationof another form. V

Referring to Fig. 1, l and 2 are cylinders of different diameters andhaving a common base 3, and 4 is a third cylinder of a diameforintermediate between cylinders 1 and 2 and inverted with its open end insome fluid these vessels-for example, that of Fig. 1-to have one end, as3, fastened to a fixed support, Whilethe other end is connected withsome mechanism which offers resistance to its motion in the direction ofthe dimension of the vessel measured between the base 3 and the top ofcylinder 4. It is evident that the load should be so appliedthroughgearing that it will oifer but slight resistance to the motionofthe vessel. Nowsuppose the vessel to contain some expansive mixture, asether 5, and its saturated vapor at temperature t andpressure 19. Iftheltemperature should rise ,(t-FLE) degrees, the tension of the vaporwill increase to, (ill-{1%) and as it is a saturated vapor-it willexpand without decrease of pressure, and since theload on the vesselolfers but slight resistance to its motion the vessel willexpand to itsmaximum limit. If now the temperature should continue to rise and remainabove (t+a3) degrees for anyconsidcrable length of time, the vesselhaving reached its maximum expansion at (15+0c) degrees could notrespond to the increase in temperature by expansion and wouldthereforeimpart no motion to the motor as the result of such increase oftemperature above (t-HB) degrees. The motor would therefore remain idletill the temperature fell below (15+x) degrees, provided the atmosphericpressure remained constant. By a similar course of reasoning it can bedemonstrated that a decided fall in temperature or decided changes inatof the vessel to contract it somewhat.

19. If now the temperature should rise to (t+w)degrees, thenon-saturated vapor of benzin would expand with decrease of tension andwould thus check the expansion of the saturated vapor of ether beforethe vessel reaches its maximum volume. It will be evident that byproperly adjusting the amount of non-saturated vapor in the vessel theexpansion of the saturated vapor may be practically confined within anydesired limits. With a saturated and a non-saturated vapor confined in avessel a rise in temperature would cause a vaporization of the liquidfrom which the saturated vapor comes and would expand the saturatedvapor if the non-saturated vapor had no counteracting effect; but as theincrease in the amount of saturated vapor will not result in anyincrease of tension and as the non-saturated vapor will have its tensionincreased as a result of the increase in the temperature this increaseof tension on the part of the non-saturated vapor will retard theformation of saturated vapor from its liquid, thereby causing the vesselto expand more slowly. By properly proportioning the saturated andnon-saturated vapors the expansion and contraction of the vessel may beso controlled that the limits of expansion and contraction shall only bereached at the extremes of atmospheric variations, and the vessel willtherefore always be in condition to do work in response to allatmospheric variations between such extremes, which would not be thecase in the absence of the non-saturated vapor. As a furtherillustration, suppose the collapsible vessel to contain some liquid, aswater, and nonsaturated vapor of alcohol at temperaturet and pressure19. If the temperature should fall, the water would absorb some of thevapor, andtthus' allow the pressure of the atmosphere acting upon theexterior surface If the temperature should now rise, the water wouldgive off some of the alcohol-vapor, and thereby cause the vessel toexpand. Changes in atmospheric pressure would produce similar results.

sel by the use of a non-saturated vapor; but said examples aresufficient to demonstrate that non-saturated vapors may often beadvantageously employed in connection with the expansive mixture oragent in the collapsible vessel of atmospheric motors.

It is to be expressly understood that the invention is not limited tothe use of the nonsaturated vapor of benzin in connection with theexpansive mixture or agent in the collapsible vessel, as many othernon-saturated vapors may be so employed without departing from thespirit of the invention. Among the non -saturated vapors which I havefound to be best suited for this purpose are those of benzin,chloroform, alcohol, and

ether.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In an atmospheric motor,a collapsible vessel containing an expansive agent and a non-saturatedvapor which will remain nonsaturated under the extreme variations ofatmospheric conditions.

2. In an atmospheric motor, a collapsible vessel containing a nonsaturated vapor which will remain non-saturated under the extremevariations of atmospheric conditions.

3. In an atmospheric motor, a collapsible vessel containing ether andits saturated vapor, together with a non=saturated vapor.

4. In an atmospheric motor, a collapsible vessel containing a saturatedvapor and a non-saturated vapor which will remain nonsaturated under theextreme variations of atmospheric conditions.

5. In an atmospheric motor, a collapsible vessel containing a saturatedvapor in the presence of its liquid, and a non-saturated vapor whichwill remain non-saturated under the extreme variations of atmosphericconditions.

6. In an atmospheric motor, a collapsible vessel containing ether andits saturated vapor, together with the non-saturated vapor of benzin.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

WESTON M. FULTON. Witnesses:

.I. W. HALL, -MYRTLE CRAWFORD.

